{"id":229421,"date":"2025-06-04T15:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-06-04T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/railuk.com\/?p=178207"},"modified":"2025-06-04T15:00:00","modified_gmt":"2025-06-04T05:00:00","slug":"alstom-secures-50-million-contract-to-enhance-and-service-class-222-trains-for-lumo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/?p=229421","title":{"rendered":"Alstom secures \u00a350 million contract to enhance and service Class 222 trains for Lumo"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Alstom, global leader in smart and sustainable mobility,\u00a0has signed a \u00a350 million contract in partnership with FirstGroup and Eversholt Rail for the refresh and maintenance of five, six-car Class 222 Meridian trains. This comes ahead of open access passenger services being launched between Stirling and London under FirstGroup\u2019s Lumo brand.<\/p>\n

The contract comprises two key components which includes a Train Services Agreement (TSA) with FirstGroup \u2013 valued at approximately \u00a340 million \u2013 to be delivered at Alstom\u2019s Central Rivers facility. From here, Alstom will maintain, overhaul, service and clean the five trains over the next five years.<\/p>\n

In addition, the contract includes a fleet modernisation programme with Eversholt Rail \u2013 worth around \u00a310 million \u2013 which will be carried out at Alstom\u2019s Widnes site. The refresh involves installation of new, ergonomically designed seating, upgraded passenger Wi-Fi for improved onboard connectivity and a full exterior repaint to align with Lumo\u2019s branding.<\/p>\n

The modernisation also includes new CCTV systems and Intelligent Engine Start-Stop (IESS) technology, which automatically shuts down and restarts the train\u2019s engine when stationary \u2013 improving fuel efficiency and reducing emissions.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis partnership marks a significant milestone in our commitment to delivering high-performance, customer-focused rail services across the UK. By combining Alstom\u2019s deep technical expertise with the operational excellence of FirstGroup and Eversholt Rail, we\u2019re ensuring that fare-paying passengers benefit from a modern, reliable and comfortable travel experience between Stirling and London. The investment in both refurbishment and long-term support reflects our shared ambition to drive innovation and sustainability in rail transport,\u201d said Peter Broadley, Commercial Director UK and Ireland at Alstom.<\/p>\n

Alstom\u2019s Central Rivers depot in Burton upon Trent is a purpose built train maintenance facility, which includes a state-of-the-art double-head lathe, nine maintenance roads and two lifting roads. The Staffordshire site also offers heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) repair and gassing capabilities, an engine repair bay, an automated vehicle inspection system (AVIS) fuelling and controlled emission toilet (CET) facilities, and an automatic intelligent train wash. Central Rivers can stable up to 37 trains, with overnight servicing of up to 26 trains.<\/p>\n

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Lumo Class 222 Visualisation (Credit – Lumo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Alstom Transport Technology Centre (Credit – Alstom)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n

Meanwhile, the Alstom Transport Technology Centre in Widnes is the UK\u2019s largest and most sophisticated centre for train modernisation. Opened in 2017, its vast size \u2013 and close embrace of digital principles \u2013 makes the Cheshire facility ideal for work on intercity trains. The contract with FirstGroup and Eversholt will support 50 roles across the two sites, alongside many more through Alstom\u2019s UK supply chain.<\/p>\n

Built by Alstom and previously operated by East Midlands Railway, the five Meridian units are scheduled to re-enter service with Lumo next year, serving passengers between central and southern Scotland and London Euston.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are pleased to work with Eversholt Rail and Alstom on the rolling stock element of our new service between London and Stirling. This new route is another important step towards rolling out Lumo as a nationwide operator and growing our open access capacity, a key priority for FirstGroup. Our investment and capabilities in open access rail have delivered reliable, value for money services, grown rail demand and helped to spur economic growth and connect communities. We look forward to doing the same on our new services,\u201d said Graham Sutherland, Chief Executive Officer at FirstGroup.<\/p>\n

Stations served will include Stirling, Larbert, Greenfaulds (serving Cumbernauld) Whifflet (serving Coatbridge) Motherwell, Lockerbie, Carlisle, Preston, Crewe, Nuneaton, Milton Keynes and London Euston. Of these stations, Whifflet, Greenfaulds and Larbert will have their first direct services to London.<\/p>\n

Open access rail operators are set up with solely private investment and take full commercial risk and opportunity. The benefits of the successful open access model, recognised by government and the independent regulator \u2013 the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) \u2013 include connecting under-served places, helping to drive economic growth and providing additional capacity on core routes which can push a modal shift away from carbon-intensive travel.<\/p>\n

\u201cEversholt Rail are pleased to be part of this tri-partite collaborative project with FirstGroup and Alstom and we are looking forward to seeing what potential opportunities this new open access service can bring.  Alstom\u2019s on-going involvement with the Class 222 fleet as the original equipment manufacturer will cement it\u2019s pedigree as a high-quality intercity train. The upgraded features will enhance the passenger experience for the journey between London and Stirling,\u201d said Paul Sutherland, Client Services Director at Eversholt Rail.<\/p>\n

Alstom\u2019s FlexCare\"\u2122\" portfolio of solutions take rail assets to the next level with tailored and flexible services for every stage of their lifecycle. From train operations and maintenance to parts supply, overhauls and modernisation, Alstom supports asset owners in achieving the highest fleet performance.  Alstom maintains over 35,500 vehicles worldwide and is a trusted partner for servicing both Alstom and non-Alstom rail assets.<\/p>\n

Image credit: Alstom \/ Lumo<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Alstom, global leader in smart and sustainable mobility,\u00a0has signed a \u00a350 million contract in partnership with FirstGroup and Eversholt Rail for the refresh and maintenance of five, six-car Class 222 Meridian trains. This comes ahead of open access passenger services being launched between Stirling and London under FirstGroup\u2019s Lumo brand. The contract comprises two key [\u2026]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":1,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16204,16013,16017,47,180,16317,85],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-229421","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-contract-news","category-general-interest","category-industry-news","category-rail-news","category-rolling-stock","category-rolling-stock-and-components","category-uk"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229421","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=229421"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229421\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":229455,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229421\/revisions\/229455"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=229421"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=229421"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=229421"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}